Mahindra Susten to Develop 150 MW Open Access Renewable Power Project

BJP, Congress Bet Big on Renewables in 2024 Election Manifestos

Daily News Wrap-Up: REIL Invites Bids for 200,000 Mono PERC Solar Cells

Solar, Storage, Wind Drive 95% of US Interconnection Queues as Backlog Rises

Ahasolar Wins Consultancy Contract for 52 MW Solar Project from BPCL

REIL Invites Bids for 200,000 Mono PERC Solar Cells

Daily News Wrap-Up: MNRE Adds 4.1 GW of New Solar Module Capacity to ALMM

MNRE Adds 4.1 GW of New Solar Module Capacity to ALMM

AutoNxt Secures Pre-Series A Funding to Finance Electric Tractor Launch

Daily News Wrap-Up: REC Records Highest-Ever Loan Approvals in FY24


					<table id="amazon-polly-audio-table">
						<tr>
						<td id="amazon-polly-audio-tab">
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-label">Listen to this article</div>
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-container">
			<audio class="amazon-ai-player" id="amazon-ai-player" preload="none" controls   controlsList="nodownload" >
				<source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/amazon_polly_45399.mp3?version=1669638873">
			</audio>
		</div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-subscribe-tab"></div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-by-tab"></div>
						</td>
						</tr>
					</table><p><a href="https://www.gov.ie/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ireland</a>&#8216;s government will make it mandatory for the heat sector to include a share of renewable energy in their services by 2024.</p>
<p>Currently, the country&#8217;s heating sector is substantially behind the European Union average in meeting heating needs from renewable energy.</p>
<p>&#8220;Ireland&#8217;s renewable energy share in the heat sector last year was 6.8%, compared to the European Union average of 22%,&#8221; the Ireland government said.</p>
<p>It added that while progress is being made, with an increase of half a percentage point on the previous year, significant action is needed to transform the energy sector to a high-renewable, low-carbon system on a pathway to net zero emissions by 2050.</p>
<p>The Department of the Environment, Climate, and Communications will now carry out a detailed study, which will be the basis for a final program. The government will then propose a share for renewable obligation, scalability, and costs to the consumers.</p>
<p>The government expects to undertake a technical consultation in Q1 2023 to inform the scheme&#8217;s final design.</p>
<p>&#8220;The obligation will further incentivize suppliers of all fuels in the heat sector to ensure that a certain proportion of the energy supplied is renewable,&#8221; the government said.</p>
<p><strong>Previous public consultation</strong></p>
<p>The country debated this issue in 2021 and received a total of 50 submissions from a wide range of stakeholders, including members of the public and industry groups.</p>
<p>As much as 76% of respondents agreed that a renewable heat obligation (RHO) should be introduced.</p>
<p>Respondents also called for the RHO to be implemented in parallel with existing government initiatives while highlighting the need for a considerable level of market maturity to support the successful implementation of the scheme</p>
<p>Further, the consultation revealed the suitability of indigenously produced renewable energy for RHO as it would have lower emissions associated with transmissions.</p>
<p><strong>National heat study</strong></p>
<p>The National Heat Study, published by the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (<a href="https://www.seai.ie/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SEAI</a>) in February 2022, pointed out that heat-related carbon emissions were rising.</p>
<p>Further, it said that while Ireland aims to cut economy-wide emissions by 51% from 2018 levels by 2030, the current Climate Action Plan measures are unlikely to deliver enough heat-related CO2 cuts to meet a proportional share.</p>
<p>Additionally, the study completed an extensive spatial analysis to estimate the availability and production costs of bioenergy resources in Ireland.</p>
<p>It highlighted that significant resources could be achieved by cultivating energy crops, including grass, for anaerobic digestion and perennial energy crops for combustion and other thermochemical energy production technologies.</p>
<p>The study also indicated biomethane as a competitive, cost-efficient path to achieving climate ambitions.</p>
<p>The government said that when changing the way energy is sourced, it is crucial to avoid negatively impacting Ireland&#8217;s biodiversity, land use, and food security.</p>
<p>Earlier this year, the Ireland government <a href="https://mercomindia.com/ireland-electricity-package-power-bills-annually/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> a package listing measures to mitigate the hike in power bills while ensuring a secure power supply to businesses and households in the country.</p>
<p>In June, Ireland&#8217;s state-owned power grid, EirGrid, <a href="https://mercomindia.com/ireland-awards-414-mw-wind-1534-mw-solar-projects/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released</a> the final results of the auction it conducted to deploy 1.9 GW of clean energy capacity under its Renewable Electricity Support Scheme 2.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/sumit-jha/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Sumit Jha</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt"><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Picture2.jpg" width="50" /><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Sumit Jha,</strong> Assistant Managing Editor at Mercom India</div>
<div class="designboxt"><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/sumit-jha/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Sumit Jha.</a></div>
<div class="authorboxn"><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Picture2.jpg" width="102" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/sumit-jha/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">Sumit Jha </strong></a>is the Assistant Managing Editor at Mercom India. Prior to Mercom, Sumit worked as a journalist for over a decade, covering the energy sector for Reuters, CNBC-TV18, Bloomberg TV India, and Financial Express, among others. Sumit holds a diploma in print journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi, and a Bachelor of Engineering (B.E) from Manipal Institute of Technology.<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/sumit-jha/" rel="noopener noreferrer">More articles from Sumit Jha</a></div>
</div></div><div class="clearfix"></div></div></div>

Ireland to Mandate Renewable Energy Share in Heat Sector by 2024


					<table id="amazon-polly-audio-table">
						<tr>
						<td id="amazon-polly-audio-tab">
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-label">Listen to this article</div>
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-container">
			<audio class="amazon-ai-player" id="amazon-ai-player" preload="none" controls   controlsList="nodownload" >
				<source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/amazon_polly_36900.mp3?version=1655558919">
			</audio>
		</div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-subscribe-tab"></div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-by-tab"></div>
						</td>
						</tr>
					</table><p>The Government of Ireland announced a package with measures to mitigate the hike in electricity bills while ensuring a secure power supply to households and businesses across the country.</p>
<p>Under the package, the government would ready the backup power generation capacity for secure electricity supply, with the provision of funds to address the risks in supply during winters.</p>
<p>The Public Service Obligation (PSO) levy (beyond those announced earlier in the year) would be altered, resulting in savings for domestic power bills for the PSO year starting October 2022.</p>
<p>A dip in the relative cost of renewable energy compared to fossil fuel generation also reflects the reduction in the PSO levy.</p>
<p>Levy payments are calculated based on estimated generation and wholesale electricity market prices for the year ahead. The regulatory body responsible for uninterrupted power supply, the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (<a href="https://www.cru.ie/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CRU</a>), estimates and certifies the levy annually, aligning with relevant legislation.</p>
<p>Earlier, the government announced that the levy would go to zero from October 1, 2022, leading to an annual saving of €52 (~$54.61), excluding the value-added tax (VAT).</p>
<p>In another announcement, the government said the proposed PSO levy would decrease from €263 million (~$276.42 million) for 2021-2022 to an estimated figure of minus €408 million (~$428.37 million) for the forthcoming year. The reduction would lead to a rebate for domestic household bills, equating to an indicative annual saving of €75 (~$78.80) on a typical home’s power bill from next winter.</p>
<p>The Commission has already arranged procurement of additional temporary emergency generation capacity for the winters of 2023 to 2024 and 2025 to 2026 and has directed the country’s state-owned power grid <a href="https://www.eirgridgroup.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EirGrid</a> to undertake measures to procure the backup capacity. By July end, the CRU will issue a final decision on the exact PSO levy applicable from October 2022 to September 2023.</p>
<p>The government said that the package would provide EirGrid with an increased borrowing limit of €3 billion (~$3.31 million) to strengthen Ireland’s national grid as part of ‘Shaping Our Electricity Future’ strategy and deliver power to the Celtic (Ireland-France) Interconnector.</p>
<p>Bord na Móna, a semi-state company, will be provided with an increased borrowing limit of €650 million (~$683.43 million) to drive a higher deployment of indigenous renewable energy across the Midlands and beyond as part of its Brown to Green strategy.</p>
<p>Recently, EirGrid <a href="https://mercomindia.com/ireland-awards-414-mw-wind-1534-mw-solar-projects/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> the final auction results to deploy 1.9 GW of clean energy capacity under the second phase of its Renewable Electricity Support Scheme. The capacity awarded in the auction includes 414 MW of onshore wind and 1,534 MW of solar, with an annual output capacity estimated for these projects at 2,748 GWh.</p>
<p>A Global Wind Energy Council report recently <a href="https://mercomindia.com/gwec-next-wave-floating-offshore-wind/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">highlighted</a> Ireland’s attractive floating offshore wind market if the transmission grid and the country’s port infrastructure are upgraded. The report highlighted that the country has the potential to produce 5 GW of power generation capacity by 2030 from offshore wind energy alone.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/gourav-mishra/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Gourav Mishra</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/WhatsApp-Image-2022-04-06-at-6.37.25-PM-1-1.jpeg" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Gourav,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/gourav-mishra/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Gourav.</a></p>
</div>
<div class="authorboxn"><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/WhatsApp-Image-2022-04-06-at-6.37.25-PM-1-1.jpeg" width="89" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/gourav-mishra/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gourav</a> is a staff reporter with Mercom India with over six years of experience in various roles with NewsX, The New Indian Express, IBTimes India, and U.S., Republic, and Analytics India Magazine. Gourav has a Master&#8217;s in journalism from Jain University, Bengaluru. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/gourav-mishra/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Gourav Mishra</a></div>
</div></div><div class="clearfix"></div></div></div>

Ireland’s Electricity Package Will Help Households Save €75 on Power Bills Annually


					<table id="amazon-polly-audio-table">
						<tr>
						<td id="amazon-polly-audio-tab">
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-label">Listen to this article</div>
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-container">
			<audio class="amazon-ai-player" id="amazon-ai-player" preload="none" controls   controlsList="nodownload" >
				<source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/amazon_polly_36838.mp3?version=1655385671">
			</audio>
		</div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-subscribe-tab"></div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-by-tab"></div>
						</td>
						</tr>
					</table><p>Ireland&#8217;s state-owned power grid, <a href="http://www.eirgridgroup.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">EirGrid</a>, has released the final auction results to deploy 1.9 GW of renewable energy capacity under its Renewable Electricity Support Scheme 2 (RESS 2).</p>
<p>Capacity awarded under the auction included 414 MW of onshore wind and 1,534 MW of solar. The weighted average price of the winning bids was €97.87 (~$101.80)/MWh. The annual output of these projects is estimated to be 2,748 GWh.</p>
<p>Some of the most significant winning bid in the auction was for the 120 MW solar project by the special purpose vehicle (SPV) of Soleire Renewables and Ballymoneen Project and Clonfad Solar&#8217;s 100 MW solar projects.</p>
<p>A total of 153 bids were submitted in the RESS 2 qualification process. Per the Minister for the Environment, Climate, and Communications, 130 projects, including 15 community projects, qualified for the auction. Three projects did not qualify, and 20 projects formally withdrew from the process.</p>
<p>RESS 2 used a competitive auction process to determine the generators that would receive support. For successful projects, the support typically applies for approximately 15 years. The successful projects represent a potential increase of nearly 20% in Ireland&#8217;s current renewable energy generation capacity. They will be delivered between 2023 and 2025.</p>
<p>RESS is a government initiative supporting renewable electricity projects. It is a pivotal component of the Climate Action Plan 2021 and a significant step in achieving Ireland&#8217;s target of at least 80% renewable electricity by 2030.</p>
<p>The auction is the second of a minimum of five envisaged auctions to occur between 2020 and 2025. These auctions provide pathways for renewable developers, including solar and offshore wind projects through dedicated offshore auctions, to plan and develop their projects. They also allow Ireland to take advantage of new technologies as they emerge.</p>
<p>The projects successful in the RESS 2 auction will also help in meeting Ireland&#8217;s contribution towards an EU-wide 2030 renewable energy target and to Ireland&#8217;s target of a 51% reduction in its greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and related carbon budgets.</p>
<p>In August 2020, EirGrid <a href="https://mercomindia.com/ireland-lists-solar-wind-projects/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released</a> the provisional auction results for RESS 1. The weighted average strike price of provisionally successful offers for all projects was €74.08 (~$87.03)/MWh. For solar projects, the average price was €72.92 (~$85.66)/MWh, whereas for community projects, the average price was €104.15 (~$122.35)/MWh.</p>
<p>In 2021, renewables overtook fossil fuels as the primary source of energy in the European Union. Denmark <a href="https://mercomindia.com/ireland-lists-solar-wind-projects/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">achieved</a> the highest share of wind and solar power, contributing to 62% of its power needs, followed by Ireland with a 35% share.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Arjun Joshi</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><div class="designboxt">
<p><img class="alignleft" style="border-radius: 50%;height: 50px;margin-top: -4px;border: 1px solid #00b451" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Arjun-Joshi-1.png" width="50" /></p>
<p><strong style="text-decoration: underline">Arjun Joshi,</strong> Staff reporter at Mercom India<br />
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Arjun Joshi.</a></p>
</div>
<div class="authorboxn">
<p><img class="alignleft" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/Arjun-Joshi-1.png" width="86" height="102" /><a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong style="color: #00b451">Arjun Joshi</strong> </a>is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Before joining Mercom, he worked as a technical writer for enterprise resource software companies based in India and abroad. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Journalism, Psychology, and Optional English from Garden City University, Bangalore. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/arjun-joshi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More articles from Arjun Joshi.</a></p>
<p style="height: 17px">
</div>
</div></div><div class="clearfix"></div></div></div>

Ireland Awards 414 MW of Wind and 1,534 MW of Solar Projects

<p><a href="https://www.statkraft.ie/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Statkraft</a> Ireland acquired five solar projects with a combined capacity of 275 MW from <a href="https://www.lightsourcebp.com/us/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Lightsource bp</a>.</p>
<p>The projects are located in counties of Meath, Laois, Tipperary, and Cork. The acquisition is the latest in a series of investments made by Statkraft Ireland in the renewable energy sector since 2018.</p>
<p>In August, Statkraft had secured contracts for over 330 MW of renewable projects in Ireland&#8217;s first competitive auction under the government&#8217;s new Renewable Electricity Support Scheme (RESS-1).</p>
<p>Ireland&#8217;s state-owned power grid, EirGrid, <a href="https://mercomindia.com/ireland-lists-solar-wind-projects/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">released</a> the provisional auction results for its RESS-1. Of the 82 provisionally successful projects, 63 were solar, and 19 were onshore wind power projects.</p>
<p>RESS-1 falls under Ireland&#8217;s pivotal climate action plan, which has a 70% renewable electricity target by 2030. This program uses a competitive auction process to determine which generators receive support for up to 15 years.</p>
<p>These contracts include two wind projects (57 MW) and two solar projects (276 MW).</p>
<p>Statkraft is focused on diversifying its portfolio of renewable energy, which includes onshore wind energy, battery storage, solar energy, offshore wind energy, and grid service solutions. The company press release claims that Starkraft is mulling on an investment decision on the construction of the Blundelstown project based in Meath.</p>
<p>Statkraft Ireland&#8217;s Managing Director, Kevin O&#8217;Donovan, said, &#8220;One of the projects which we have acquired from Lightsource, namely Blundelstown in Meath, was actually successful just last month, in RESS-1. We are already quite advanced in developing the construction program to deliver these RESS-1 projects. Lightsource bp has an established track record, and as such, the high quality of each development rendered this bundle of solar farms, an extremely attractive proposition for us.&#8221;</p>
<p>Lightsource bp&#8217;s CEO for Europe and International, Kareen Boutonnat, said, &#8220;We are delighted to enter into this agreement with a company of the caliber and profile of Statkraft. We continue to be fully committed to developing Ireland&#8217;s utility-scale solar market and assessing future opportunities.&#8221;</p>
<p>Last year Lightsource bp, earlier <a href="https://mercomindia.com/lightsource-bp-raises-150-mn-finance-solar/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">raised</a> £150 million ($192 million) in debt financing from Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), a long-term institutional investor. The funds were to be utilized to finance a portfolio of 100 solar projects located across various countries and totaling more than 700 MW.</p>
<p>Image Credit: Statkraft.ie</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/rahul-nair/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Rahul Nair</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><p>Rahul is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Before entering the world of renewables, Rahul was head of the Gujarat bureau for The Quint. He has also worked for DNA Ahmedabad and Ahmedabad Mirror. Hailing from a banking and finance background, Rahul has also worked for JP Morgan Chase and State Bank of India. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/rahul-nair/" rel="noopener noreferrer">More articles from Rahul Nair.</a></p>
</div></div><div class="clearfix"></div></div></div>

Statkraft Acquires Five Irish Solar Farms Totaling 275 MW From Lightsource bp

<p>Ireland’s state-owned power grid, <a href="http://www.eirgridgroup.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">EirGrid</a>, has released the provisional auction results for its Renewable Electricity Support Scheme 1 (RESS 1).</p>
<p>RESS 1 falls under Ireland’s pivotal climate action plan, which has a 70% renewable electricity target by 2030. This program uses a competitive auction process to determine which generators receive support for up to 15 years.</p>
<p>The auction which opened on July 21, 2020, and closed on July 28, 2020, saw 114 applicants, of which only 109 qualified (including eight community projects). Of these, 82 were provisionally successful, while the rest remained unsuccessful for the auction. Of the 82 provisionally successful projects, 63 are solar, and 19 are onshore wind power projects.</p>
<p>According to a press release issued by EirGrid, the weighted average strike price of provisionally successful offers for all projects was €74.08 (~$87.03)/MWh. For solar projects, the average price was €72.92 (~$85.66)/MWh, whereas, for community projects, the average price was €104.15 (~$122.35)/MWh.</p>
<p><a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Provisional-Auction-Results-of-the-First-Renewable-Electricity-Support-Scheme-by-the-Government-of-Ireland.png"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-20689" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Provisional-Auction-Results-of-the-First-Renewable-Electricity-Support-Scheme-by-the-Government-of-Ireland.png" alt="Provisional Auction Results of the First Renewable Electricity Support Scheme by the Government of Ireland" width="342" height="171" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Provisional-Auction-Results-of-the-First-Renewable-Electricity-Support-Scheme-by-the-Government-of-Ireland.png 342w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Provisional-Auction-Results-of-the-First-Renewable-Electricity-Support-Scheme-by-the-Government-of-Ireland-300x150.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 342px) 100vw, 342px" /></a></p>
<p>According to EirGrid, in total, 2,236.65 GWh was provisionally successful, which included 767.315 GWh of solar and 1,469.338 GWh of onshore wind. Similarly, in terms of offered capacity, the successful offers represented over 1.2 GW capacity with over 796.3 MW in solar bidding and 479.2 MW in wind.</p>
<p>Under the community-led projects category, communities will be allowed to develop their own renewable energy projects and sell the energy back to the grid.</p>
<p>JBM Solar Developments Limited made the highest offer for solar at 119 MW. On the other hand, Oweninny Power 2 DAC made the highest offer among onshore wind projects at 83 MW.</p>
<p>The final auction result will be declared on September 10, 2020, and the projects will be awarded on September 25, 2020.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, in another international auction development, the Emirates Water and Electricity Company announced that it awarded the 2 GW Al Dhafra solar PV project to a consortium comprising Abu Dhabi National Energy Company, <a href="https://masdar.ae/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Masdar</a>, <a href="http://www.jinkopower.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">JinkoPower</a>, and <a href="https://www.edf.fr/en/meta-home" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">EDF</a>. EWEC replaced the earlier Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Company (ADWEC) that was merged within the Ministry of Energy in 2018. The company said that it <a href="https://mercomindia.com/abu-dhabi-2-gw-solar-project-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">set the tariff</a> for solar energy at United Arab Emirates Dirham (AED) 0.0497 (~$0.0135)/kWh based on the levelized cost of electricity.</p>
<p>Image Credit: Energy Ireland</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/staff/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Staff</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"></div></div><div class="clearfix"></div></div></div>

Ireland Lists 82 Successful Solar and Wind Projects in its Provisional Auction

<p>India has only four percent of the building that can be classified as ‘green,’ according to a smart cities indicator survey conducted by Ireland-based multinational, <a href="https://www.johnsoncontrols.com/en_in" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Johnson Controls</a>.</p>
<p>However, 38 percent of buildings in India want to get the ‘green building certification’ in the future as compared to the global percentage of 44. Around 46 percent are willing to pay a premium to lease space in a certified green building in India as compared to 51 percent in the world.</p>
<p><a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ibs.png"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-13025" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ibs.png" alt="" width="1018" height="734" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ibs.png 1018w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ibs-600x433.png 600w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ibs-300x216.png 300w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ibs-768x554.png 768w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ibs-650x469.png 650w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/ibs-624x450.png 624w" sizes="(max-width: 1018px) 100vw, 1018px" /></a></p>
<p>Lack of private engagement, standards, and availability of funding were the top three barriers to investment in smart cities in Asia, the survey found. In comparison, the biggest barrier to investment in smart cities globally is the lack of proven business cases.</p>
<p>In India, lack of technical expertise to evaluate or execute projects and uncertainty regarding savings and performance were the top barriers for investment in smart cities. Lack of funding to pay for improvements was also one of the reasons that have impeded the investment.</p>
<p>The report lists five drivers &#8211; energy cost savings, greenhouse gas footprint reduction, increasing energy security, increasing building resilience, attracting/retaining employees, which make the energy investment decision.</p>
<p>The survey was conducted to track key drivers, organizational barriers, technology trends, and the status of smart city solution implementations around the world.</p>
<p>Over 330 cities across twenty countries, including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, France, Germany, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States were covered in the survey.</p>
<p>As per the survey, cities are gradually looking to implement solutions that will drive growth, while providing safe, sustainable and resilient environments for their citizens.</p>
<p><a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb.png"><img decoding="async" loading="lazy" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-13026" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb.png" alt="" width="1128" height="654" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb.png 1128w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb-600x348.png 600w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb-300x174.png 300w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb-768x445.png 768w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb-1024x594.png 1024w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb-650x377.png 650w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/isb-624x362.png 624w" sizes="(max-width: 1128px) 100vw, 1128px" /></a></p>
<p>The survey has listed five technology trends- the internet of things (IoT), data analytics, artificial intelligence/machine learning, cyber security, and systems interoperability standards, which will have the maximum impact on the implementation of smart city projects in next five years.</p>
<p>&#8220;India is getting a bit of a slow start, but it would be catching up. The most exciting data that we have is that 46 percent of the organizations in India are willing to pay a premium to lease space in a green building,&#8221; Clay Nesler, the Vice President of the Johnson Controls told PTI.</p>
<p><a href="https://mercomindia.com/india-energy-conservation-building-code-residential/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Recently,</a> the Ministry of Power announced the ECO Niwas Samhita 2018, which is the Energy Conservation Building Code for residential buildings (ECBC-R). The implementation of this code is expected to boost energy efficiency in the residential sector, its occupants, and the larger environment by promoting energy efficiency in the design and construction of homes, apartments, and townships.</p>
<p><a href="https://mercomindia.com/bee-inks-pact-cpwd-energy-efficiency-buildings/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">In January 2019,</a> the Bureau of Energy Efficiency and the Central Public Works Department have signed a memorandum of understanding kickstarting their cooperation to promote energy efficiency in buildings.</p>
<div class="saboxplugin-wrap" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person" itemscope itemprop="author"><div class="saboxplugin-tab"><div class="saboxplugin-gravatar"></div><div class="saboxplugin-authorname"><a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/author/nitin/" class="vcard author" rel="author"><span class="fn">Nitin Kabeer</span></a></div><div class="saboxplugin-desc"><div itemprop="description"><p><img class="alignleft wp-image-9822" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/nitin-2.png" alt="" width="99" height="105" /><span style="font-family: Calibri"><span style="color: #000000"><span>Nitin is a staff reporter at Mercomindia.com and writes on renewable energy and related sectors. Prior to Mercom, Nitin has worked for CNN IBN, India News, Agricultural Spectrum and Bureaucracy Today. He received his bachelor’s degree in Journalism &amp; Communication from Manipal Institute of Communication at Manipal University and Master’s degree in International Relations from Jindal School of International Affairs. <a href="https://mercomindia.com/author/nitin/">More articles from Nitin Kabeer</a></span></span></span></p>
</div></div><div class="clearfix"></div></div></div>

ireland

Get the most relevant India solar and clean energy news.

RECENT POSTS